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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 25, 2019)
A6 • Friday, January 25, 2019 | Cannon Beach Gazette | CannonBeachGazette.com North Coast Tourism Studio outlines goals, projects get around without a car. The group, headed by Ken Shonkwiler, of the Oregon Department of Transporta- tion, also plans to develop better wayfi nding signs so people know where to park and get around once they get here. By BRENNA VISSER Cannon Beach Gazette Establishing a beach and trail ambassador program, improving signs and start- ing a new message cam- paign about protecting nat- ural resources are some of the ideas tourism lead- ers are proposing to make the tourism industry more sustainable. For the past year and half, business owners, gov- ernment, tourism and non- profi t leaders from Clatsop and Tillamook counties have been participating in a North Coast Tourism Studio, a pro- gram coordinated by Travel Oregon. At the program’s fi nal event Wednesday, Jan. 16, participants designed teams to carry out projects related to solving congestion issues, overcrowding at popular destinations and visitor edu- cation over several years. In addition to a $25,000 grant from Travel Oregon, business leaders from Clat- sop and Tillamook counties are pooling together about $45,000 to help fund these initiatives as a region. “The biggest benefi t from this is that we ended working in silos,” said Nan Devlin, of Visit Tillamook Coast. “It’s not about just supporting one town, one county … it’s about supporting the North Coast.” The right message Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Haystack Rock is a draw for visitors to the Oregon Coast. Encouraging stewardship Many of the projects are centered around pro- tecting trails, parks and beaches from misuse and overpopulation. One team is set to create and share more photos of less-visited places to reduce pressure on popular desti- nations like Ecola and Fort Stevens state parks. Another will invest more in communication about good stewardship, starting with an inventory of what is happening already. “If we’re going to encourage people to recycle, we have to make sure there’s enough recycling contain- ers,” said Claudine Rehn, of the Tillamook Estuary Partnership. One team, led by Teri Wing, of Oregon State Parks, plans to create a Beach Trail Ambassador program that will help educate visitors about proper trail etiquette and safety. “If someone is going up Falcon Cove and they have fl ip-fl ops on, they’ll turn them around and say, ‘It’s not good to wear fl ip-fl ops on this trail,’” Wing said. “The idea is to get them good info to make them safe as well as give them infor- mation about the area.” Transportation was also a focus, with some aiming to educate hotel staff on pub- lic and alternative transpor- tation options so more vis- itors are aware of how to Participants also decided it was important to edu- cate and impress upon local residents how important tourism is to the region’s economy. Pamela Wev, a Clatsop County commissioner and leader of the group charged with championing the value of tourism, said it’s import- ant to address the distaste some residents have about the industry. “Lots of people don’t see tourism as a part of our local economy,” she said. With tourism spending at almost $2 billion on the Ore- gon Coast alone, Wev said it will take everyone embrac- ing the industry to make sure it grows and is managed in the right way. “That’s money spent by people from outside,” she said. “As an economic development person, I can tell you there’s nothing bet- ter for a community than people spending money that was earned somewhere else, because it really enhances your economic base. We need to help our citizens understand this reality.” Water: Falcon Cove water concerns drive discussion Manzanita: New year brings new challenges Continued from Page A1 Exploring alternatives Water shortages in Fal- con Cove can mainly be attributed to record low fl ows from the area’s main spring and increased devel- opment, according to a water district memo. The last long-term plan, done in 2004, projected the water district would be fully built out at 147 homes. Now, the district expects 220 homes. The dramatic growth in homes being used as vaca- tion rentals is also contrib- uting to the problem. Vaca- tion rentals have brought a signifi cant increase in demand during the time of year with the least amount of water. An engineering study in September showed the sys- tem would not be sustain- able if the area was fully built out, said Charles Dice, the secretary and system operator for the water dis- trict’s board. The water district is exploring different ways to offer alternatives to people interested in building during the moratorium. One option is trucking in water and stor- ing it in holding tanks. “I wanted to come up here and kind of lobby for our lot owners,” Dice told county commissioners. “As a water board, we feel really badly we can’t give them the water connection they need.” Long-term approach The county has reserva- tions about approving alter- native systems during the moratorium, particularly because there is no require- ment for property owners to connect to the water dis- trict’s system once it is lifted. “It’s just better plan- ning practice,” Gail Henrik- Continued from Page A1 Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Construction workers build a home in the Falcon Cove area south of Cannon Beach. son, the county’s commu- nity development director, said in reference to hav- ing homes all be part of one water system. Another concern is the water district’s pro- posal to use holding tanks and trucked-in water. The county already has a number of water alternatives on the books, Henrikson said. But before any building permits can be approved, the county and water district will have to come to a new agreement. Currently, the county requests a letter from the water district guarantee- ing enough water for a new development. In order for alternatives to work, this checks-and-balances method needs to be more fl exible, Henrikson said, so that homeowners seeking to use alternative systems like rain catchment or a well can prove to the county their system meets county code. As of now, there is no way to verify through the county or the water district whether the holding tank system would comply with county code. “What we’re looking for is something that documents they can meet our code of 250 gallons a day,” Henrik- son said. Dice argues that hold- ing tanks and rain catch- ment systems are similar, but that the tanks offer more reliability. “As an engineer, I don’t see a big difference between this and a rainwater system, We have a fabulous patio where you can enjoy the weather and your meal. “TO-GO” Orders Welcome 156 N. Hemlock • Cannon Beach 503.436.9551 Owned and Operated by the Cleary Family powered by music fi rst Cannon Beach’s Best Selection of Oregon and Washington Wine! Experience Family Dining in a Relaxed & Friendly Environment Serving Seafood, Pizza, Sandwiches, Espressos, Beer, Wine, Ice Cream and our Homemade Desserts especially in these drought years the last three years,” Dice continued. “I would much rather call some- one up and have someone deliver my water rather than sit around and pray to the rain Gods and hope that it rains.” In the meantime, the water district has passed a water conservation ordi- nance and commissioned a well feasibility study to identify new sources. But water availability needs to stay on the com- mission’s to-do list, Com- missioner Pamela Wev said. “This is an issue I bet isn’t going to go away,” she said. “And it’d be really ter- rifi c if we could begin to do some thinking on the long term.” of Manzanita as an assis- tant to then City Man- ager Jerry Taylor, who was beginning to eye retirement or at least semi-retirement. Twenty-two months later, in October 2018, Alamillo was named city manager taking over for Taylor, who had held the position for 22 years. Taylor assumed the role of project manager, a two-day-a-week position created by the city council, to help and continue to men- tor the new city manager. His duties now include the development of a personnel handbook, updating council rules and procedures along with Manzanita’s nuisance ordinance and emergency preparedness plan. With no guarantee that she would be named city manager, Alamillo had gone through the hiring process all over again for Taylor’s position. She was ecstatic and honored when she was offered the job. Things continued to fall into place. “Manzanita has been so welcoming and everyone “Best Wine Shop” 2016 & 2018 Reader’s Choice Award Shack Hours Sunday - Thursday 11am to 5pm Friday & Saturday 11am to 5:30pm Tasting Room Hours Daily • 1 to 5pm has been so supportive. I continue to feel good about moving here,” she said. With the new year come new challenges as Ala- millo continues to settle in and tackle her day-to-day civic duties. First up on the council agenda is revisiting its goals for 2019, most of which are carryovers from previous years and ones that Alamillo has become well acquainted with in her short tenure. At the top of the list, she said, is complet- ing a plan to relocate Man- zanita’s city hall. To that end a fi ve-mem- ber committee, in existence since 2017, will deliver its fi ndings this spring to include a space assess- ment for current and future needs, a cost analysis, and fi nancing options. While no offi cial decisions have yet been made this much is certain, the new struc- ture will be seismic resis- tant and located outside the tsunami inundation zone. It will house not only city hall and police offi ces but a emergency preparedness facility as well, according to Alamillo. UPCOMING TASTINGS Jan 26 • Best Buys of the Year Feb 2 • Rainy Day Wines Feb 9 • Wines For Romance Feb 16 • 90 Points or More, $30 or less Feb 23 • Highly Rated & Local Mar 8 • Savor CB-Wine/Art Walk Mar 9 • Wine Walk 124 N. Hemlock, Cannon Beach - 503.436.1100 - www.thewineshack.wine Go. Do. coastweekend.com
